Butte Creek hosts 1st AJGA event in Chico

CHICO &GT;&GT; The Butte Creek Country Club has been home to many prestigious golf tournaments and events since its founding in 1962. On Monday, the course will add a big event to that list: Chico's first American Junior Golf Association tournament.

The AJGA will host the Bishops Gate Golf Academy Junior Open from Monday to Wednesday at the Butte Creek Country Club,with 96 golfers between the ages of 13 and 18 set to compete in the 54-hole tournament. The AJGA will have a Junior-Am Fundraising tournament on Monday, with tournament rounds starting on Tuesday.

Among the 96 golfers competing, eight are AJGA champions and seven are committed to play golf in college. Six states and five different countries will be represented on the course next week. That kind of diversity is something tournament director Steve Storm is very excited about bringing to Chico. Also, Pleasant Valley High standout Noah Norton will be representing his hometown.

"There's never been anything like it here. It's not only good for the youth, but it will be great for the Chico economy," Storm said, as the tournament is projected to create $185,000 in revenue. "We actually have the top junior boy and junior girl playing in the event this year, so that's exciting too."

Those top golfers are Sacramento's Alexander Lee and Palo Alto's Anna Zhou, and the two are expected to lead the pack heading into play at Butte Creek. They will meet up with a course that, while straightforward in parts, boasts greens that are well-bunkered, making putting that much more difficult.

Mark Range, general manager at Butte Creek Country Club, said the course will be in great shape when it comes time to tee off. After all, this is one of the biggest events the course has ever hosted.

"In the Chico area, this is probably the biggest that's come through here in a long time," Range said. "It's a great recognition for our club, not only at a local level but a national level as well."

With different states and even countries represented in the event, it's safe to say that many have not played at the course before. There is one golfer that has, though. In fact, he's got a membership at the club.

Norton, the winner of the 86th annual Chico City Championship at age 14, will be playing with a bit of a home field advantage. The sophomore Viking feels confident heading into this event.

"I know how to read the greens, I'm comfortable on them," Norton said. "I've got it grooved into my mind where and how far to hit it."

That's not to say the course will be easy; it's actually the opposite. Norton said the course is unusual in that there aren't many highs and lows. Instead, it tends to bring the field closer together. Norton has also played in AJGA tournaments before, and he knows the level of competition is second to none.

With that said, Norton isn't focused on where he's going to end up at the event's end. He's going to focus on playing his game and let the standings figure themselves out.

"My goal coming into this tournament is to have fun and enjoy it," Norton said. "I want to play my best and give my 100 on every shot. At the end of the week, a success would be three solid rounds."

At the end of the event, the top-ranked juniors may dominate the standings. A local golfer may break his way into the top of the pack. Whatever the case, Storm hopes the AJGA will be returning to Chico for many years.

"We'd like to be able to continue this for years to come. This is the inaugural event and there's a lot of local support that will enable us to continue to have the event here," Storm said. "Our goal is to have a long running event that will help inspire local youth to play golf."